Learning Activity 6-B-1
Group C

Part A



Joel, here's my SEA analysis. Please feel free to edit/revise/repost, or if you want to submit your own, that should be fine too. I worked on laying out the components of this wiki page. I'll be back here tomorrow to work on this some more.


Ruth, here's my SEA analysis. I had already completed it too.


Part B (Please also see the discussion tab)
  1. Review some of the other maps in the series of WWII Military Situation maps.
  2. Use the discussion area for your small group on the wiki to answer the following questions about the series of maps:
    • How can this series of maps be used in the classroom?
    • What prior information would be necessary for students to use these maps effectively?
  • This series of maps can be utilized to help students visualize how Allied troops arrived at and moved through France, pushing back the enemy towards Germany. It also helps students to see sense the uncertainty that was there. Sometimes the generals did not know where all of the enemy units were located, and there was missing information. Yet the invasion continued, based on what they knew at the current time.
  • Downloading a selection of the maps as jpgs and using them for analysis might be an easier way to see the progression of the operation over time.
  • Video clips from newsreels from the time as well as from movies, such as "Saving Private Ryan" could be another source of information related to the information on the map and would provide an even fuller picture of the event.
  • Prior information and resources that students would need might include maps of the world and of Europe, knowledge of prior events in World War II, and information contained within the map collection in the Library of Congress online collection. Basic map reading skills would also be needed.
  • These maps would be great to use in a classroom during study of the events of World War II. They lend a sense of the time, the place, and of the enormity of the task. Curiosity will be awakened in many students. Answering questions they asked while examining the sequence of maps will lead students to a more memorable experience than just looking at text and photos. First person stories can then be matched to the days shown in the maps and real people.

Part C

Brainstorm ideas with your group for using maps in multiple subject areas. Be as creative as you can. Provide links to maps if possible, but you may share ideas even if you can’t find a specific online resource to match the idea.

1. Language Arts- Historical Fiction- American Revolution: It's the winter of 1777 and you've been through many campaigns under Washington. You've endured severe hardship, do you return home or continue on fighting for liberty in the bitter cold? Using a map and other primary source journals, trace the places and amazing events leading up to the victories that lead to victory at Yorktown.

2. World Language - Halloween Literature Tour - example "Faust" - Using a map, trace the route that Mephistopheles took Faust on through the heart of Germany. See the places and events made famous through this piece of classic German literature.

3. Math Mythbuster example - Using a map of ancient Greece, have students determine the distance and obstacles for first marathon run, the 27-mile-long run of Pheidippides from Marathon to Athens. The distance and route have been disputed. Have the students study the geography and distance to develop an argument using evidence and mathematical calculations defending the theory of a specific route.

4. Math Problem Solving - Have students view a map made of the American colonies in 1771, by Evan Lewis -- http://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/map_item.pl. How accurate was the map? How might you go about developing an opinion about whether it was accurate? After analysis, students write two word problems, based upon the distances between settlements as shown on the map. Each of their problems is posted on the forum. Each student then answers two of the problems posted by their classmates by replying to their postings.

5. Science - Map of the Moon. Using a NARA worksheet, analyze a map of the craters of the moon - http://www.wired.com/wiredscience/2010/09/moon-map/. What do you think the colors represent? How was this map created? Why is it important?